bookluvingbabe

Mr. BLB and I went last night.  The salmon collar and blue crab eggs were the winners of the night, along with the grilled broccoli. The Swiss chard was too salty and they removed it from the bill.  For mains we had the pork porterhouse and the flatiron. Both were prepared well.  I think we would happily go back and do more appetizers and sides and skip the mains though. 

We walked around union market because we arrived early.  It’s such an interesting collection of options. 

And even after the worst of the storm was over, it took us forever to get home to upper MoCo 

We picked Tapp’ed and the only good thing I can say is that they had a grapefruit radler.  And plenty of tvs.  They were slammed and unprepared for the volume.  Our food didn’t arrive until well into the second half and the steak sandwich and fries were ice cold.

Family friendly, somewhere in Bethesda with at least partially edible food.  

We ended up at Buffalo Wild Wings at Navy Yard for the last half of today’s game and we all feel pretty lousy for it. But the camaraderie was great.  

Ended up at Fiola.  It was lovely but not magical. 

I’ve used Main Event recently and had issues with getting food for our vegan guests that was actually vegan.  If you don’t have special needs for the day of it is probably okay. 

On 6/23/2019 at 1:16 AM, DonRocks said:

How much is this platter, and what is it called?

Chef’s Sampler.  $13.  

I love solo dining.  at a table, not the bar.  

My opportunities are limited and the dining landscape has changed in the 12 years since BL-7th grader arrived and my time became less my own. 

A few weeks ago I tried at Duck Duck Goose but they won’t take reservations for solo diners and refused to seat me without a reservation in an empty dining room. An hour plus later I had eaten mediocre Ethiopian, cried and their dining room was still 75 percent empty.   

I have another window this Wednesday.  

I will be in DC, with car.  Looking to dine around 6 pm.   If you miss Palena and Frank Ruta’s cooking and hospitality, where would you go? 

I don’t know how new it is but BL-7th grader (I feel old...) has been really enjoying the sushi from the 2nd level.  

I will have to try the Rocklands pop up next time.  We’ve been going to more games this season and I haven’t found anything I really like.  

They have a csa.  Haven’t tried it yet but want to. 

On 1/1/2019 at 9:06 AM, hopsing said:

I am curious why you think that.  When I reserve online, I don't mind that it is Resy or Yelp or Reserve.  Are some patrons loyal to OpenTable for some reason?  Maybe they are familiar with the process and/or get points?

I'm lazy.  I always check opentable first.  I will remember to go to Resy for something in the Great American Restaurant Group but beyond that, if it isn't on OpenTable, I'm not likely to pursue it.

Mr. BLB booked Fiola Mare for our anniversary dinner tomorrow night.  We haven't been and I'm quite looking forward to it, especially since BL-6th grader will be away so I don't have to spend a fortune to feed him too.

---

Resy.com (FranklinDubya)

On 12/28/2018 at 10:25 PM, DonRocks said:

I'm just now indexing this - who is this person? From what I see, he's a promoted entity "with restaurants" in Illinois, California, and New York. I'm not dismissing him based on this, but I'm not the least-bit impressed based on what little I've read.

Is this a TV thing? If so, ugh. Meh, I guess somebody needs to feed the masses - why not him?

I have an unreasonable fondness for Fabio, if only because his ipad app (now defunct) had cooking videos that kept BL-6th grader amused for hours when he was 4 years old.  We went to one of his restaurants in Chicago and when I told the whiny kid why we were there, he perked up immediately, even though he hadn't watched those videos in years.

I don’t see what is going to lure me there instead of any of the other places at Pike and Rose.  

Weirdly picky 11 year old.  Will eat horse tartar but not pb and j.  

Dinner was out for Mr. BLB’s birthday.  11 year old had deviled eggs, cedar planked salmon and apple pie.  

Breakfast this morning was Icelandic yogurt and leftover Peruvian chicken and rice and beans. 

Another fuck cancer night.  To my colleague who took a diagnosis of pancreatic and bile duct cancer that had spread to his lymph nodes 4 plus years ago and got more time than anyone imagined or expected until the chemo stopped working over the summer. Cancer sucks.  (Hearing about a colleague's death while out of town at a work conference sucks too.  Especially when it is all you can do not to burst into tears until you can get safely to your hotel room...)  

WIll post more but wanted to say a quick thanks. Ended up at Xochi, Pappas Steakhouse and Phoenicia.  

Super helpful and put the geography, which I had not had a chance to figure out, in perspective. 

On 10/20/2018 at 2:40 PM, Marty L. said:

Just wanted to post a reminder that this small, oddly-placed spot, although nothing earth-shattering, remains incredibly consistent and probably has the best food to be found in all of Gaithersburg, with the possible exception of Tortacos.  (Am I overlooking anything?)

The only other real contender in Gaithersburg is Athens Grill.  Tortacos is still good but not what it was when it opened. 

My family decided not to come to Houston with me so I'm on my own for dining.  2 lunches, 2 dinners and 2 breakfasts.  I will be at the Hilton-Americas, across from Toyota Center, and I don't want to stray too far--willing to cab for one or two meals but otherwise I'd rather walk.

I'm moderately adventurous but can not do hot peppers. 

Tell me where I should eat.  Please.

Thanks!

52 minutes ago, Genevieve said:

I do like hearing of other kids with fantasy baseball teams!

Mr. BLB and I met in our fantasy baseball league.  We've been taking BL-6th grader to the auction since he was 8 and he's had a team since he was 9.  We're total baseball nerds.

On 9/25/2018 at 4:57 PM, dwt said:

 

Joe Forte's is on Eater's list of essential Vancouver restaurants. We went there to enjoy northwest seafood (king salmon, halibut, etc) prepared in a manner that let the fresh ingredients shine. Oh, and oysters too. I ate so many oysters on this trip and enjoyed sampling the west coast offerings. The atmosphere reminds me of a traditional DC steak and seafood house, with lots of wood paneling, waiters in white jackets, and a pianist playing schlocky music. There were even a few parties wearing suits and ties.

We also went to Joe Forte's.  We had planned to get the seafood platter but Mr. BLB wasn't up for it.  He didn't like his snapper.  I discovered (and confirmed while in Alaska) that I don't really like halibut.  BL-6th grader loved his salmon and was mad we didn't get one of the seafood platters. So we left vaguely disappointed but I think that was more about us than the restaurant....

We were back for 2 days last week while I had a work conference.  Mr. BLB and BL-6th grader explored Revival Food Hall.  BL-6th grader tried the Poke and loved it.  I went the next morning and got breakfast from the Hot Chocolate Bakery.  We did not try 55Forum.  It just didn't look as appealing.

I still really like Little Goat Diner.  The Grill Room was less successful this time but the leftovers made an excellent breakfast one morning. 

We were in Vancouver at the worst of the smoke from the California wildfires and the inland BC wildfires.  We still did Capilano and Grouse (loved both) but we cut our time at Grouse short because the smoke was awful.  

We stayed at the Pan Pacific for ease in getting on our cruise.  Mediocre food and disappointing service on the club level. 

Afternoon tea at the Fairmont was fun and charming.  They were doing a Great British Baking Show inspired menu.  

Poutine at Steamworks was excellent. 

Gelato at Bella was nothing special and we have its equal locally. 

The winner, especially for BL-6th grader, was Wildebeast.  He has been eager to try horse for ages and when he spotted the horse tartare on the menu, he was sold.  We all liked our meal there but he would go back in a heartbeat.  (They also offer a blind tasting menu which he wanted to try—the thought of turning over decision making to the chef made Mr. BLB twitch.)

I tried to go today.  Sign says it is open 7 am to 4 pm.  Walked in a little before 10 am.  "We open at 11."  But your sign...  "We're here at 7 but we open at 11."

(They have a breakfast menu posted... I wasn't in the mood to argue with someone who clearly didn't want to serve me. Mr. BLB and I have been talking about having a lunch date to revisit it and the memories of our days living in Dupont--I think we'll head to CF Folks instead...)

We have indulged in PNC Club seats twice this season when Scherzer was pitching.  He is the pride and joy of BL-6th grader's fantasy baseball team.  The first time, in early August, was perfect.  Great seats, and not terrible pricing if I wait to the last minute and don't bring Mr. BLB. 

But the second time, on Labor Day, was less than stellar.  Tables cleared of plates of food while we were still eating. One plate removed while I was chewing.  It was miserably hot and they could not keep up with ice and cold water.  The brunch offerings weren't as good as the dinner offerings. 

It was nice to have an a/c place to cool off though.  But next game we will be back in the 400s....

On 8/3/2018 at 2:44 PM, John William G said:

Where did I dine?

I don't know but I need to go there.  That looks amazing.